"E. E. Doc Smith - D'Alembert 10 - Revolt of the Galaxy" - читать интересную книгу автора (Smith E. E. Doc)

He must have dozed off, because he woke with a jolt. He strained his senses to learn what had
awakened him, but the barn seemed quiet outside the cramped confines of his hiding place. Then he
heard a sound - the slow creaking of the barn door on its hinges. Someone had come in here very
quietly. That person obviously knew something was amiss.
Pias tried to reach for the stun-gun inside his vest, but the closeness of the compartment made it
impossible to bend his elbow the proper way. In any case, the gesture would have been futile, for
he suddenly found himself staring down the barrel of a stun-rifle. A deep masculine voice said,
"Come on out of there before I have to shoot you."

CHAPTER 4
Tas the Tyrant
Even staring down the barrel of a weapon, Pias remained cool and rational. This stun-rifle was at
least twenty years old; they didn't make models of this particular shape any more. If Tas was
upgrading his security forces, he'd hardly give them outmoded weaponry. Then too, the man's words
had been stern, but scarcely officious. This was no man of a military mind barking crisp orders.
Pias guessed he was facing the owner of this small farm, who was concerned with a trespasser on
his property.
Moving carefully, so he wouldn't alarm his captor, Pias squeezed out of the storage compartment.
He kept his hands up and well away from his body; the farmer was probably more nervous than he
was, and Pias didn't want to make any mistakes that would frighten the man into shooting without
cause.
As he'd guessed, the man was dressed casually in country work clothes - but he knew how to hold a
gun. "Who are you?" the farmer asked, never taking his sights off Pias. His voice had a thick
rural flavor as he spoke Romny, the native tongue of Newforest.
"My name's Gari Nav, and I mean you no harm," Pias replied in the voice he'd practiced aboard the
ship.
"What were you doing in there?"
"Sleeping," Pias answered truthfully. "It's a little cramped, but it's good and dark."
"Why were you in there?"
"I'm not a thief, if that's what you're thinking. I was just looking for someplace where I
wouldn't disturb anyone for a while, then I'd go along my way."
The farmer didn't lower his gun. "That's not an explanation."
The sound of a copter grew louder overhead. "But that is," Pias said, looking up to indicate the
sound from above.
A teenage boy poked his head in through the door. "Poppa, it's the brassies. They're landing in
the front yard."
The farmer looked sternly at Pias. "What do they want with you?"
Pias was taking a gamble, and he knew it - but he also knew the Newforest people. They were mostly
descendents of Gypsies and English Tinkers who had fled Earth during the bad years of the early
twenty-first century. They hated authority and loved a clever rogue - and Pias hoped he could
capitalize on that fact now that he was facing a threat from the planetary authorities.
"I was just trying to make a profit with some off-world goods," Pias said with a wink. "The
government's mad because I don't have an import license."
The farmer had a hard decision to make, and he had to make it quickly. The "brassies," as Tas's
security agents were evidently called, had brought their copters down and their footsteps could be
plainly heard walking toward the barn. He had to make up his mind whether he believed Pias's story
and, if he did, whether it was enough to keep him from turning the fugitive in.
"Get back in there," the farmer said, motioning at the storage compartment with the barrel of his
rifle. "We'll sort this out later."
Pias hastened to comply. He was not out of danger yet, but the farmer had shown the expected